This Austrian seal of quality for sustainably produced wines was developed over several years of scientific work by the Austrian Winegrowers' Association together with experts in the field. It is a well thought-out certification system to measure the sustainable operation of domestic winegrowing enterprises. Certified winegrowers have gone through a two-stage process in which they were also examined by an external audit. Certifications have been possible since 2015. These are produced and strictly audited according to economic, ecological and social criteria. From the grape harvest to the ageing of the wines and bottling, the entire production process is scrutinised for its contribution to sustainability. Economical use of water, energy, chemical fertilisers and efficient use of machinery are assessed just as positively as, for example, fair working conditions or sustainable economic activity. Only if all the requirements are met may a winegrower label his wines with the quality seal.
The certification system maps the three pillars of sustainability (ecology, economy and social issues) shown in the diagram on the left and evaluates over 340 activities in the winegrowing enterprise. The Austrian Winegrowers' Association provides the evaluation system as an online tool for winegrowing enterprises and winegrowers. There, one can anonymously enter the farm activities, which show computer-automated effects on soil, biodiversity, water, material consumption, climate, energy and quality as well as in the social and economic areas. For each activity, it is evident whether it is more or less sustainable compared to alternative measures. If the sum of all ratings exceeds a certain level, the company is rated sustainable and can be certified. The evaluation is presented in a spider diagram according to the traffic light system.
For the "Sustainable Austria" certification, the majority of defined goals must be achieved with the processes grape production, wine production, vineyard replanting, social and economic aspects. The wineries can submit an application via the certification system - online tool on the website of Sustainable Austria or initiate the certification process. Certified farms are not automatically organic farms with organic wines produced according to EU guidelines, but there are many organic farms that are also sustainably certified. The criteria conform to those of organic plant protection and organic viticulture. Similar certifications are carried out in Germany by DINE and Fair'n Green..
